Inside the GM factory where Cruise’s autonomous Bolt is made

TechCrunch took a field trip to GM’s Orion Assembly plant in Michigan to get an up-close view of how this factory has evolved since the 1980s.

What we found at the plant that employs 1,100 people is an unusual sight: a batch of Cruise autonomous vehicles produced on the same line — and sandwiched in between — the Bolt electric vehicle and an internal combustion engine compact sedan, the Chevrolet Sonic.

This inside look at how autonomous vehicles are built is just one of the topics coming up at TC Sessions: Mobility, which kicked off July 10 in San Jose. The inaugural event is digging in to the present and future of transportation, from the onslaught of scooters and electric mobility to autonomous vehicle tech and even flying cars.